No thanks to full English

SHOULD Manchester City fail to wriggle off the hook and the recriminations into a Champions League demise begin on Thursday, then it seems the scapegoats for an underwhelming campaign have been earmarked.

Roberto Mancini was not impressed as Franck Ribery leads Richards on a merry dance []

The impromptu decision by Carlos Tevez to down tools and go on strike against Bayern Munich when City’s European adventure remained in its infancy has overshadowed much of what has followed.

Yet as well as consigning Tevez to the wilderness, Roberto Mancini looks to have settled upon other conclusions in the aftermath of that harrowing 2-0 reversal in Germany. And chief among them appears his lack of trust in some of City’s English players.

Bayern, their place in the knockout stages assured, will arrive at the Etihad Stadium with Mancini acutely aware they must inflict a first defeat on them but also hope that Villarreal take something off Napoli.

The manager must hatch the perfect master-plan in order to keep his end of the bargain. But if that includes Micah Richards or Gareth Barry, that would be something of a surprise.

Richards’ best hope of figuring, for example, would be by default and if Pablo Zabaleta fails to recover from a knee problem. Catch a re-run of Bayern’s opener, when Franck Ribery cuts in from the right and unleashes a piledriver that Joe Hart parries but is then beaten by Mario Gomez – and Mancini’s reaction is fascinating.

He is caught turning to his bench, muttering to himself in exasperation and waving an arm in frustration in the direction of Richards and Yaya Toure as if clear tactical instructions had not been followed.

Yaya Toure would not want to watch his role in failing to close down Ribery in a hurry. But it is Richards, who became distracted by Philipp Lahm’s overlapping run outside him, who has not played a single minute in Europe since.

When Mancini’s recent comments about the full-back needing to take his ‘brain’ on to the pitch with him are factored in, then a picture emerges. And it is not one Richards will care for, given Fabio Capello’s continued apathy towards him. Yet it is not just Richards who appears to have paid a heavy price. Gareth Barry, beaten at the front post in the build-up to Gomez’s second goal, which came from a free-kick delivered with venom from City’s right-back position, has also seen his opportunities dry up.

England midfielder Barry was relegated to the bench for the next match, against Villarreal, only to be sent on after 40 minutes as City struggled. If the introduction of Barry – it was another Englishman, Adam Johnson, who made way – suggests that he has his manager’s faith, then that was to prove his last contribution.

He sat out the other game against Villarreal and played no part in the defeat in Naples that has left City staring elimination in the face as Mancini decrees that Nigel de Jong’s attributes are more suited to the continental climate. City, of course, boast a wealth of options, the depth of their squad illustrated by the fact that they made nine changes to the side who knocked Arsenal out of the Carling Cup for Saturday’s victory over Norwich.

Yet Mancini’s indifference towards English players in Europe seems clear, with Barry and Richards preferred for the Premier League.

In addition, James Milner has only belatedly forced his way into the starting line-up for the past two Champions League matches, after initially finding himself being handed cameo appearances.

Even Joleon Lescott, a model of consistency alongside Vincent Kompany in the league, has not been immune to being left out, although Mancini’s decision to overlook him for that defeat against Bayern, bringing in Kolo Toure instead, must rank as one of his daftest.

Mancini’s record in Europe’s premier club competition, with Lazio, Inter and City, is not overly impressive – standing at 27 victories from 52 matches, with 10 draws and 15 defeats. These are statistics that suggest he is not getting the best from the resources at his disposal.

The suspicion that English players lack game-intelligence is hardly new. There was always the sense that Rafa Benitez felt the same about some of Liverpool’s home-grown contingent during his time in charge at Anfield.

The worry is that such assumptions are not necessarily wrong. And that brings a whole range of questions as the countdown to Euro 2012 starts in earnest.‘Richards and Barry left to pay the price in Europe’